War vs peace: Trump, Ukraine President Zelenskiy tear into each in full glare of world media
Trump has sided with Putin since taking over as president, shocking his traditional allies in Europe and beyond and leaving Ukraine increasingly vulnerable. Friday’s outburst was the most public display of that shift to date.
Trump’s tax on trade: Rationale ranges from raising money for tax cuts to bringing back manufacturing
The sweeping nature of Trump’s plans, hitting close trading partners and core industrial goods, has created the sort of uncertainty around the economic outlook that could push down business investment, a further drag on growth. That could, of course, be offset if firms see opportunity to avoid tariffs by moving operations to the US, a dynamic that would only be clear over time.
How education programme for migrant and refugee children in Mauritania is cutting numbers of asylum seekers in Europe
The school for children of migrants and refugees, set up in 2018 as an early response to the growing need, is the kind of programme envisioned as part of the 210 million euro ($219 million) accord the European Union and Mauritania brokered last year.
How Kremlin arrested 20,000 people for Ukraine war dissenters, forced dozens to ‘punitive psychiatry’
Yekaterina Fatyanova, 37, was interned on April 28 last year at the KKPND No.1 psychiatric hospital in her home city of Krasnoyarsk after being accused of discrediting the Russian armed forces by publishing an article in a small opposition newspaper she ran in her spare time. She was not the author of the piece, which argued the war in Ukraine was driven by imperialist motives.
Trump denounces Ukrainian President Zelenskiy as ‘dictator’ and warns he risks losing his country
Trump’s outburst followed Zelenskiy’s comments on Tuesday that the US president was parroting Russian disinformation when he asserted that Ukraine “should never have started” the war, which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion three years ago.
America’s decision to sideline Europe in Ukraine peace talks with Russia stuns NATO members
Later in the day, it emerged that US and Russian officials will meet in Saudi Arabia in the coming days to start talks aimed at ending the war. US officials have insisted they will only settle for a “durable” peace deal and Ukraine will be at the table.
Perverse effects of conflict minerals initiatives in Congo remind us of how inaccurate narratives fuel the very problems they pretend to tackle
Natural resources do play an important role for both eastern DRC and Rwanda’s political economy, and it is true that the return of the M23 in 2021 correlates with a sharp rise in Rwanda’s mineral exports, as per official statistics.
EU cut out as US and Russia set to meet in Saudi Arabia to start talks to end the war in Ukraine
Trump, who took office on January 20, has repeatedly vowed to swiftly end the Ukraine war. He made separate phone calls to Putin and Zelenskiy on Wednesday, leaving Washington’s European allies alarmed that they will be cut out of any peace process.
Rwanda faces aid freeze if EU backs European Parliament’s position on eastern Congo conflict
Congo is also the world’s most aid-dependent country, though humanitarian operations, which were 70 per cent funded by Washington last year, have taken a big hit since U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a pause on foreign aid last month.
How and why Kenyan is featuring in February 23 German elections, coalition permutations
If no two larger parties can form a majority, the CDU/CSU, SPD and Greens could decide to form a so-called “Kenya” coalition, as their colours match those of the Kenyan flag.
